Bank of America Corp DE Sells 266,704 Shares of Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN)

Bank of America Corp DE lowered its position in Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN - Free Report) by 68.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 124,890 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after selling 266,704 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE's holdings in Smith & Nephew were worth $3,070,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Smith & Nephew by 87.6% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,480 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 691 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Smith & Nephew in the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in Smith & Nephew by 36.5% in the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,667 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 446 shares during the period. Hara Capital LLC increased its holdings in Smith & Nephew by 391.4% during the 4th quarter. Hara Capital LLC now owns 2,457 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 1,957 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Smith & Nephew by 26.0% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 5,871 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $144,000 after purchasing an additional 1,213 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 25.64% of the company's stock.

Smith & Nephew Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NYSE:SNN traded up $0.23 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $29.35. The stock had a trading volume of 96,215 shares, compared to its average volume of 790,242. The company has a market cap of $12.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.59, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.68. Smith & Nephew plc has a 12 month low of $23.69 and a 12 month high of $31.72. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $27.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on Smith & Nephew from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Smith & Nephew from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. HSBC cut shares of Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, UBS Group cut shares of Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $28.00.

About Smith & Nephew

Smith & Nephew plc engages in the development, manufacture, marketing, and sale of medical devices. It operates through the following segments: Orthopaedics, Sports Medicine and ENT, and Advanced Wound Management. The Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine and ENT segment consists of the following businesses: knee implants, hip implants, other reconstruction, trauma, sports medicine joint repair, arthroscopic enabling technologies, and ENT.